Combination garment



June 16, 1925.

J. F. SCOTT COMBINATION GARMENT Filed Sept. 5, 1924 E Z5 Z5 I ,W i

IN V/LV T0 [6 Patented June 16, 1925.

UNITED STATES 1,541,858 PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN F. SCOTT, OF COI-IOES, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TOARNOLD S. HATCH, 0F ALBANY, NEW YORK.

COMBINATION GARMEN '1.

Application filed September 3, 1924. Serial No. 735,555.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN F. Soon, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of Cohoes, county of Albany, State of New York, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Combination Garments, ofwhich thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to an article of wearing apparel and specificallyto a combination garment for men, women and children.

The garment is particularly adapted for underwear, such as union suits,but is not necessarily confined to such uses because the invention isobviously applicable to other types of union or combination garments,such as athletic suits, pajamas and overalls.

In the interest of brevity the following description particularlypertains to union or combination garments for underwear, but as statedabove, it is obvious that the same construction may be utilized inmaking the other garments above mentioned.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a garment of the unionor combination type in which it is not necessary to provide buttoning orfastening 'means ordinarily required to close the chest or back portionsin garments of this type.

Another object of the invention is to provide a garment of the union orcombinationtype which is, for the most part, constructed of non-elasticfabric, such as nainsook or other non-elastic woven fabric suitable forthe particular purpose for which the garment is to be used or ofpractically non-elastic knitted fabric so that such a garment may beeasil donned or taken off, and which will nicely t the body of thewearer without the use of buttons or fastening means.

A still further object of the,invention is to provide a garment of thetype described in which the upper back portion and shoul der portionsconsist of elastic fabric preferably of knitted webbing, the shoulderportions being extended downwardly and around the arm pits, the garmentbeing so constructed that the shoulder portions may be displacedlaterally to permit the garment to be readily donned or removedbystepping into or out of it through theneck opening, yet when worn, thechest, shoulder and back portions are positioned to adequately cover andnicely fit the body of the wearer, the entire front portion of thegarment being of the'material of which the greater part of the garmentis made.

Still further objects of my invention are to provide in garments of thetype indicated, inserts having straight seams, at a right angle to theelasticity of the elastic fabric, between the clastic fabric and themore rigid inelastic fabric, and to provide a neat, smooth seam thatwill not be easily pulled apart.

With these and other objects in view the invention comprises the garmentdescribed and illustrated in the accompanying specification and drawingsand defined in the claims.

The various features of the invention are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings in which: v

Fig. 1 is an elevation showing the front of a garment embodying myinvention.

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the back of said garment.

' Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view in perspective partlybrokenaway andpartly in section of one side of the garment shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a view of the upper portion of the garment '(being brokenaway) the neck opening being stretched in order to don the garment bystepping into it, or to dofl' the garment; in this figure the stretchedneck opening is bounded by' the full lines and the dotted lines show theportions of the garment in place on the body of the wearer when donned.

Fig. 5 is a rear view of a modified structural form of the garment shownin reduced size.

Referring more particularly to the accompanying drawings, the frontchest portion is designated 10, the back portion 11 and 12, shoulderportions 13 and 14, said shoulder portions continuing under the arms at15 and 16, the side portions 17 and 18 and the leg portions 19 and 20.All of these portions with the exception of the arms and the upper backportion are constructed of woven, non-elastic fabric, such as nainsook,or other suitable woven, nonelastic fabric,

or substantially non-elastic knitted fabric. 105

Extending across the upper portion of the back and bordering the neck 0ening 0 is an elastic knitted fabric 12. This fabric may extenddownwardly a distance of either,

two, four, six or eight inches. The representatien shown in Fig. 2 showsone of the minnnum sizes for the knitted fabric s tuated in the back,and Fig. 5 shows the maximum size where the knitted fabric extendssubstantially down to or slightly below the arm pits.-

The upper edge of the knitted fabric 12 borders the neck opening at 21,and the inner edges of the shoulder straps 13 and 14 border the neckopening at 23 and 25. The lower portions 15 and 16 of the shoulderstraps extend under the arm pits at 27 and 29, thus serving the doublefunction of providing elastic shoulder straps and the important functionof absorbing undue perspiration usually found under the armpit.

The various parts of the garment are stitched together on the seams asshown in the drawing, the back insert 12 being substantially rectangularin shape, thus avoid ing the diagonal seams between two kinds offabrics. In fact, the only seam between the two kinds of fabricsconsists of a single horizontal seam at 30, against which the strainsare at a minimum.

This feature of having the seams run straight and not on a bias with theribs or weaving of the elastic material is of importance in that itprovides a joint much less liable to pull apart than is the case when aseam is made on a bias to the knitted fabric. Moreover, a much smootherand sightlier seam can be made with a seam at right angles to the ribsof the WOVBII material than when the seam is on a bias therewith.

As indicated more particularly in Fig. 3, the knitted fabric 12 isdoubled with the folded edges at the top, forming an edge of the neckopening, and the top edge 31 of the relatively inelastic fabric 11 isinserted between the lower edges 32 and 33 of the elastic fabric 12 andstitched in position. This form of seam is particularly firmand smoothand easy to launder.

As will be seen from the above, the union suit or combination garmenthas an entirely smooth front of fabric which is either nonelastic or ofvery limited elasticity extending from the top of the neck to the bottomof the leg and around 'the sides with a substantially rectangular insertrunning cross-wise in the back of the garment, across the shoulderbordering the neckopening whichis of relatively greater elasticityparticularly in a lateral direction. In addition, elastic shoulderstraps are provided, which extend under the arm purposes described.

As clearl hown in the drawi the garment may donned or taken 0 the bodyof the wearer by stretching the shoulder portions 13 and 14 outwardly inthe direction of the arrows therein shown, thus stretching the upperportion of the elastic pits forf the knitted Web insert 12 so as toextend the neck opening 0 into ahody opening which may be drawn up overthe body of the wearer when the garment has been stepped into the usualmanner of donning a unlon or combination garment. Conversely, the samestretching of the neck opening of the garment is effected in order toremove it from the body of the wearer.

The elastic insert runs the entire width of the back at the shoulders ofthe garment and may be made in various lengths from top to bottom, asspecified above; that is, starting from the top of the shoulder andextending downwardly and does away with the usual method of, puttinginserts in the back or center of the garment above the hips which aredifficult to sew in and which have a tendency to unduly stretch out ofshape by reason of the fact that the wearer when sitting down gives thegarment a great strain or pull. My new invention avoids this objectionand gives a continuously smooth fitting garment of the same proportions.The depth of the elastic insert at the top portion of the back isgoverned in accordance with the kind and elasticity of the cloth used.

One of the chief purposes of the elastic inserts in the back in additionto permitting the garment to be put on by stepping into it, or taken offby passing the garment over the body, is'that this elastic knittedmaterial is absorbent and thus avoids the uncomfortable feeling which.occurs at the back by the use only of a substantially rigid cloth, suchas nainsook or other of the hard finished fabric.

It is a well known fact that rigid fabrics such as chiefly used in themanufacture of union suits called nainsook union suits, do not absorbthe perspiration caused by contact with the body and as the principalpressure is across the back right over the shoulder by reason of theclothing which is worn "outside, the back of the suit is alwa s moistand uncomfortable, as these rigid fa rics retain the perspiration and donot absorb it like a knitted fabric, such as is used in the garmentembodying my invention.

A further and important feature is the elasticity which thegarmentaffords cross- Wise of the shoulder, the elastic insert in the back,permits great elasticity across the shoulderwhen movin the arms forwardas in reaching for somet ing or exercising, an elasticity which is neverfound in' nainsqok garments made in the ordinary manner.

This additional elasticity avoids the undue strain usually found inother constructions and adds greatly to the durability of the garment.

The arment furthermore is exceedingly economical from the standpoint ofmanu-- facture and withstands ordinary wear of laundering toa maximumdegree.

and neck portions being provided with the? usual border. The. garmentmay also be provided with thefiy and overlapping seat portions common tounion suits. a

As changes of construction could be made within the scope of myinvention, it is in tendedthat all matter contained in the abovedescription orrshown in the [accompanying drawings be interpreted asillustratl-ve and not in a limiting sense.

' Having thus described my'invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1.- A combination bifurcated garment, the trunk or body portion of whichis constructed of substantially non-elastic fabric, the said non-elasticfabric extendingaround the sides, shoulder straps of elastic materialcontinued about the arm holes of the garment to form an elastic bordertherefor, the

upper edges of the non-elastic material lyr The garment may be finishedin'the usual way with the ribbed edges and the 'armi leg.

ing within the space between said arm holes,

and an'insert of elasticmaterial secured on alhorizontal line, to saidnon-elastic material at the back of the garment and extending upwardlybetween the elastic borders of said 1 arm holes for a substantialdistance and secured thereto and forming a'border for the, neck openingand having its ribsextend ing vertically to provide a relatively greatelasticity in a lateral direction to enable the neck opening to beenlarged sufficiently to permit the body of the wearer to passtherethrough and to enable the garment to contract about the neck of thewearer,{-

2. A combination bifurcated arment the trunk 'or body portion and theeg, portions of which are constructed of a non-elastic fabric, saidfabric extending around the sides and under the arms, borders of elasticportions of said border portions and having the upper edge of therelatively inelastic material inserted between the lower edges andjoined thereto on a straight, substantially horizontal, seam extendingbetween said arm. hole borders, the upper edge of said i'nsert'forming aneck'co ening border.

- lying above the lower edges 0 the arm hole.

JOHN F. sco'r'r.

